Luke 6:32-35 meaning

The parallel Gospel account for Luke 6:32-35 is Matthew 5:44-47.

After communicating “the golden rule” in verse 31, Jesus emphasizes His teaching to His disciples by asking and then answering three rhetorical questions. These questions parallel and expand upon His teaching in Luke 6:27: “Love your enemies.”

The term used for love is not among the Greek words commonly used throughout classical literature. It is not “philos” which means “friendship.” It is not “eros” which means “strong desire,” and is commonly used to describe sexual desire. It is a form of “agape” (G25 - ἀγαπάω), pronounced “ag-ah'-pay.” Agape is used to describe the Christlike brand of love. Agape love is based on choices rooted in values, irrespective of emotions, appetites or affections. Jesus admonishes His disciples to make a choice that goes against affections.

Agape is the lifestyle of a true and happy servant. It is the characteristic of a Christ-follower (John 13:35). Jesus’s disciples are able to have agape for others because Christ first had agape for us (1 John 4:19). In each case, the motivation for agape is because this sort of sacrificial behavior is in our long term interest, because God will reward us. The Apostle Paul stated that agape love of others is necessary for our actions to yield profit (1 Corinthians 13:3).

If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them (v 32).

The first rhetorical question Jesus asks is: if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? The answer is clearly “None.” Jesus then answers His question by saying: For even sinners love those who love them. Jesus’s conclusion to this exercise can be summarized this way: “Therefore we ought to love our enemies if we want to receive credit (rewards) from God.”

Jesus observes that even sinners understand their self-interest sufficiently to be kind to those who were kind to them. It is easy to follow the implications of Jesus’s logic: if you love only those who love you, and if despised sinners do the same, therefore you are no better than a sinner yourself. The only reward you can expect is the reciprocity you can gain from other people. If you want a reward from God, you must rise above the level of behavior of sinners.

If our view of love is purely transactional, then we will only receive the amount of benefit equal to the amount of love we give others. In other words, this kind of love and its reward are like water. They will never rise higher than its source. We will only receive (at best) the exact amount of credit, or reward, for our love in proportion to the amount of love we give others. Jesus wants us to consider love according to His kingdom’s economy which is infinitely greater in both its supply and reward than that of the world’s. Jesus wants His disciples to gain great rewards, eternal rewards that do not rust or decay (Matthew 6:19-20). Loving our enemies is a path to that result.

Matthew’s Gospel account uses the more specific term “tax collectors” in its parallel verse instead of Luke’s more generic “sinners” (Matthew 5:46). This could be because Matthew’s Jewish audience more readily associated the specific group of tax collectors with unrighteousness and sin. The religious Pharisees lump the tax collectors and sinners together several times in the book of Luke (Luke 5:30; 15:1-2).

Thus, Matthew’s Jewish audience would appreciate the specific term “tax collectors” to represent their “enemies” as Jesus says in Luke 6:27. But Luke’s Greek Gentile audience would likely relate more with the generic term “sinners” instead of the culturally specific “tax collectors.”

If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same (v 33).

The second rhetorical question Jesus asks mirrors the first. He says: if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Again, the answer is clearly “None.” Jesus then answers His question by saying: For even sinners do the same. Jesus’s conclusion to this exercise can be summarized this way: “Therefore we ought to do good to our enemies if we want to receive credit (rewards) from God.”

In this rhetorical exercise, Jesus simply replaces the phrase “love” from the previous question with “do good.” This shows the connection between an active choice and action of “doing” with agape love. Remember, agape love is based on choices rooted in values, irrespective of emotions, appetites or affections. It is loving someone else selflessly, sacrificially, and unconditionally. Doing good to others who do not do good to you is the Christlike picture of agape love. It is this kind of action that will receive credit (or rewards) from God. If you are only good to those who do good to you, then the only reward you can expect is the reciprocity you gain from other people.

If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount (v 34).

The third and final rhetorical question Jesus asks follows the same pattern as the first two. This time He speaks to the reality of reciprocity as it relates to lending financial help to others.

He says If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Again, the answer is clearly “None.” Jesus then answers His question by saying: Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. Jesus’s conclusion to this exercise can be summarized this way: “Therefore we ought to give financially to our enemies without expecting a return if we want to receive credit (rewards) from God.”

If we are to live in the way Jesus communicates to His disciples, then we must be willing to lend to others financially without expecting anything in return. That is, Jesus’s disciples are to be extremely generous. As Jesus later says to His disciples, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12:34).

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men (v 35).

Jesus concludes this section of teaching by describing the heart of what He means to love others unconditionally without expectation of them paying you back. Love is not given on the condition or expectation of return.

One does not expect to be repaid by their enemies. One does not expect to be repaid by the “least of these.” But we are to love our enemies, to serve the least of these, and to seek their good if we are to follow Jesus and live the Good Life.

Instead of performing these actions with an expectation of receiving favor in return, Jesus tells His disciples to love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. By expecting nothing in return, we are following Jesus’s example of agape love as we seek to serve others.

If we do good for earthly rewards, the best we will get is earthly rewards (Matthew 6:2b). These rewards will eventually lose their value. And they will be of no profit to us when we have lost our soul in their pursuit. But if we sacrificially love others for Jesus’s sake we will gain our lives (Luke 9:24-25) and we will be given the best reward.

The reward for living in this manner is that you will be sons of the Most High.

The phrase the Most High is used five times in the book of Luke and numerous times in the Old Testament. It refers to God the Father and is used in the Old Testament to describe Him as the “possessor of heaven and earth” (Genesis 14:19-20), “a great King over all the earth” (Psalm 47:2), and the “ruler over the realm of mankind” (Daniel 4:17). The angel Gabriel also prophesied to Mary that Jesus will be called “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32).

By living in the way Jesus commands His disciples, we can conform our lives to be like His. When we do so, we resemble the Son of the Most High and can be identified as sons of the Most High God. Even though our actions do not justify us in the sight of God—that is a Gift on the basis of faith (Ephesians 2:8-9)—we inherit the reward of eternal life by following Jesus’s example of serving even to the point of sacrifice and suffering (Romans 8:17). Believers in Jesus are exhorted to follow Jesus’s mentality (Philippians 2:5) and live as God designed us to serve others with His agape love.

Jesus states one more practical way that we can follow His example when He describes how even He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.

Jesus, Himself, is kind to Judas who betrayed Him. He is kind to those who crucified Him. He is kind to Peter who betrayed Him. In His kindness, Jesus gives the perfect example of what it means to love our enemies as He Himself is kind to ungrateful men. And He invites His followers to emulate His perfect example of how to live.